Bring me the gift of loss—
baby teeth, big girl teeth
this dead old molar, done
chewing down years, rootless,
separated from the body
surrendered to silk-sack departures—
mother, father, lovers, husbands, friends
this house, that job, the accumulations
and cost of having.
Teach me to put youth, beauty
fire, fury, gutting want
under the pillow.
Tooth Fairy
Catherine Arra is the author of four full-length collections and five chapbooks. Her newest full-length, Last Evening With All the Versions of Myself, is forthcoming from Finishing Line Press, September 2026. She lives in the Hudson Valley of New York with her partner Alex Stolis and their dog Daisy. Find her at www.catherinearra.com